Partnered with the Devil
by BlackShadowScythe
Summary: based on the game with a bit of a twist. Aaron Evergreen (OC) travels to Swordhaven to join the war effort against the Shadowscythe. His plan is simple: Slay the dragon, Save the King and get knighted, but somewhere along the way it all takes a turn for... CHAOS! Now, in order to save Lore from Drakath, Aaron must partner with the second in command of the Shadowscythe (OC). R&R!
1. Prologue

_February 11, X-2009_

_Swordhaven_

_0900 hours_

_63 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

A letter, a warning, war...

A war that would mark the end of an era, and the dawn of a new one which had only been reality in the King's darkest nightmares. As long as he could remember there had always been war. Even peaceful days were tense and filled with unease as darkness crept upon them, threatening to drown the world in endless night.

An explosion, the southwest tower. A cry, a scream, knights running around, their armor clanking with each step they took.

The King's military generals had assembled in the throne room.

Sir Maximilian Lionfang, better known as the Commander of the Golden Onslaught Knights, sat at one end of the war table, fingering the hilt of his blade as if itching for a fight. The young knight was dressed in golden armor with pauldrons sculpted to resemble lions. "The Shadowscythe forces have set up camp in the Dwarfhold Mountains and Darkovia." he reported.

"They've completely surrounded us!" a man with short graying blond hair growled, slamming his fist down on the war table. Lord Brentan, Guardian of the Neverglades had never been very optimistic, but even the aging warrior seemed gloomier than usual. "My men will not be able to continue fighting for long."

"If peace negotiations with the Northlands are successful, we will be able to get enough new recruits to cut of their supply lines and force them back." a third man said. Sir Rolith Arendale, Captain of the Pactagonal Knights, a man whose loyalty was unquestioned and courage unmatched.

"We don't have that kind of time." The King said, solemnly. He rose from his throne.

"Your Majesty?" Rolith said.

"The Shadowscythe will have already made their move by then. We must stand our ground and defend the citizens at all costs. All for every able bodied man in the kingdom to fight." he headed towards the door which suddenly burst open. A messenger rushed into the throne room and fell to the floor, panting heavily.

The messenger stared up at the men, a look of horror crossed his face. His whole body was shaking. Lionfang stepped forward "Well?" the charismatic, golden hair knight demanded impatiently. The messenger opened his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. "For goodness sakes Conroy! This is a war! Spit it out already!"

"Y-Your Highness! Tera, s-she's gone!"


	2. Of Men and Moglins

_February 12, X-2009_

_Oaklore Forest_

_1000 hours_

_38 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

Aaron hated the forest. It was noisy. It was cramped. It was green. It was almost overwhelming. In a word, annoying. He marched through the earth winter earth and wished he was back in the Sandsea. He breathed out a puff of frosty winter air and promised himself that if he couldn't make ten thousand gold in the first month he would go home. Home where is was warm, toasty and, best of all, free from the prying eyes that seemed to hiding in every corner of the forest.

He followed a path which soon led him up a hill which ended a cliff. A wondrous landscape lay out before him. From so high up the forest looked almost beautiful, but Aaron knew it was all just an illusion. He stared out at the red horizon. The sun was starting to come up over the trees and he could vaguely make out several towers sprawled across the skyline. From a distance, it all seemed peaceful, he thought, no one would ever guess that at that moment, a war was consuming the capital of Oaklore.

From his hometown in the Sandsea, Aaron had received word that a battle had erupted in the city of Swordhaven several days ago. It had started with a few stray skeletons roaming the sewers. One of the citizens, who had noticed the sudden appearance of undead in the city, wandered down into the underground of Swordhaven to investigate. When he disappeared, one of the villagers alerted the Royal Guard who alerted the King. The King sent a patrol of knights to search for the man who had ventured into the sewers and to block off all entrances to the sewer systems. The knights were unable to locate the man's body and he has declared dead.

A day later, the war began. Undead appeared in every corner of Swordhaven. Guardian Towers in all of the surrounding towns reported mass floods of skeletons. Luckily, the harsh climate and blinding sunlight in the Sandsea had protected Aaron's hometown from the masses of undead. The King of Swordhaven had requested that every able bodied man in the Kingdom take up arms and pitch in with the war effort and although the Sandsea didn't fall within the King's jurisdiction, the prospect of wealth and power urged mercenaries from every guild in the country, including Aaron, to head to the capital. Having been born and raised in the Sandsea, Aaron had seen his fair share of poverty. He had been taken in by a member of the ranger's guild, Black Scorpion, as a young child, and over the years, earned a reputation as one of the best archers and swordsmen in the Sandsea, second only to his mentor and foster father, Zhoom.

So far, every attempt to gain ground and keep the waves of undead from advancing had been futile. Aaron smirked, "None of those Shadowscythe loses will stand a chance! Those undead better prepare to be put back into the grave!" he boasted.

Aaron had already planned out what he would do. The battle was centered around Swordhaven. It would take him at least three days to reach the city which was located on the northern border of the country. He would slay as many undead as possible and rescue the King. He would slay the Emperor of the Shadowscythe and be knighted, Sir Aaron of Swordhaven. He said it a few times aloud. He liked the way the words seemed to roll across his tongue. He planned one working his way up and eventually become a lord with an army and estate with more horses than in the whole Sandsea combined.

As he fantasized, the dawn sky began to fill with dark clouds and a storm rolled in. A bolt of lightning split the sky, followed by a clap of thunder and a sudden downpour that had Aaron drenched in rain in a matter of moments.

"Just what I needed." he grumbled.

* * *

Rain; a sickening side effect that seemed to accompany many wars. Milleanna never enjoyed rain, but she found it especially disgusting in times of war. The ordinarily smelly battlefield became almost unbearable when drenched in water. The scent of rotting corpses drenched heavily in rain overwhelmed her senses.

"My lady." said a voice.

"Um?" Milleanna murmured, not bothering to look around.

"Perhaps it would be wise to seek shelter from the storm lest we be struck by lightning."

"Very well" Milleanna said. She slid off the roof of Battleon's Guardian Tower and swung inside through an open window. The window was part of a circular hallway that spiraled down the tower and lead to rooms that contained spare weapons and armors. Milleanna took several steps down the hallway, tracking watery footsteps on the red velvet carpeting.

The hallway was deserted. Every guardian had either been sent to Swordhaven or was fighting the ongoing battle on the streets. "My lady?" Milleanna turned around to see a young woman standing behind her with long, blonde curls that tumbled down into a waterfall of hair that ended just below her knees and wearing a clean, white apron over a black dress. "I've prepared a room that I hope you will find to your liking." she said, as she opened a door to one of the rooms.

The room was simple but neat. There was a well made bed in one corner and a desk and chair in the other. The desk was equipped with a feather pen and a well of ink. "I took the liberty to check the other floors of the tower. It seems we are the only ones here."

"Of course we are you idiot." Milleanna sneered, "No guardian worth their swords would be here while the streets are as crowded as they are. If they did, I would consider it an insult! An insult upon the Empire!" she declared, "The emperor has planned it out in more depth then you have in that hollow little skull of yours. He has made sure, that not one guardian will 'sit it out' as it were."

"Yes my lady." the woman nodded.

Milleanna walked over to the bed and sat down, soiling the white sheets with rainwater. "Of course, he didn't bother to tell me before he decided to attack every city in the country." she grumbled, beckoning the woman towards her then pointing to her boots which were coated with rain and mud. The woman got down on one knee and pulled the boots off Milleanna's feet."Give me a heads up when you decided to declare war on half the continent, is that so much to ask?" she looked down at the woman, "Well Hellenca?"

"Of course not my lady." she said as she picked up the muddy boats.

"I don't think he understands what is at stake, starting a war of this caliber. If he were to fail, it would not only be his failure, but the failure of the entire Empire, everything we've worked towards the last twenty years lost!"

"Well" Hellenca replied, timidly, "He has been lucky so far. I don't think that there is any need to worry my lady." she said as she exited the room.

"Yes." Milleanna said, without much conviction. During his two decade reign, the Emperor of the Shadowscythe Empire had never once lost a battle and while continuous successes could often teach even an over-confident ruler, to fear defeat, it only made him more arrogant. Nevertheless, he was a brilliant military commander and an even more skilled swordsman. There was not a chance in the world that they could fail, so why did it feel so wrong?

"Helenca come back for a moment!" Milleanna cried.

Helenca stepped back into the room, "Yes my lady?" she said, obediently, just as a soggy coat landed over her face.

"That's all you may leave." Millenana said. She waited a moment, then blew out the candle burning at the foot of the bed, leaving the room in total darkness. "How long do you plan on staying hidden?"

Suddenly, a dark figure materialized next to her. The figure wore a dark, flowing cloak that seemed to be made of darkness. "It's nearly time." the figure whispered in a hushed tone.

"I know."

"I expected more of a reaction, especially from you. Tomorrow is the day, the day we reclaim what rightfully belongs to us!"

"Yes, but at what cost?"

"There's always a cost little sister. That can't be helped." the figure rasped."The question is, what is more important to you."

"I would give anything!" she decided, "No price is too high. We've fought too hard for to long to back away. Let fate do what it will."

* * *

The forest air was cold and damp with the quickly falling rain. Aaron followed the road to town, praying he wouldn't meet any hostile creatures on the way. He was already completely drenched and had no intention of staying in the rain longer then he had to. He walked on until he could see the roofs of houses and a tall tower in the distance. It was a town, too small to be Swordhaven, but not so small as to avoid being a target for the Shadowscythe.

"Well what do we have here?" a voice behind him said. Aaron unsheathed his blade and whirled around. There was no one around. "Up here." the voice said.

Aaron looked up. Sitting on a tree branch several feet above his head was a dark blue moglin with a dusty gray scarf wrapped around his neck and a staff in one furry paw. "Who are you?!" Aaron asked, pointing his blade threateningly at the little blue creature. His gesture was a meaningless one for the blade was not nearly long enough to reach the branch let alone the creature sitting on it. The moglin seemed to notice this for it yawned as if bored by Aaron's antics. Then it looked down at the ranger and held out one of its paws, "Zorbak, necromancer extraordinaire."

"Are you the one that's commanding these armies?" Aaron asked.

"Meh. I told you who I was, but you haven't told me who you are yet." Zorbak huffed, "Kids today. No manners."

"I am Aaron Evergreen, Ranger of the Sandsea, here to fight for the kingdom." he announced. "And now since I have told you who I am I demand that you tell me your purpose here."

"Meh, an archer huh? You have guts kid I'll give you that." Zorbak said, "Or maybe you're just really stupid."

"What do you mean?"

"Meh. You're not really thinking of fighting a war like that are you?" Zorbak laughed. "Your quiver only has two arrows left, not that arrows will be much use against the undead."

"I have a sword." Aaron reminded him.

"That's going to rust if you don't sheath it." the moglin cackled.

Aaron shook the water droplets off this blade and sheathed it quickly.

"Meh." Zorbak said, flashing a smug smile filled with pointed teeth. "The Shadowscythe are just some punks you can get rid of with a swipe of a sword. They're a lot worse then anything you've seen in your lifetime kid." He paused and chuckled, "Would you like to know a secret?" Aaron nodded, hesitantly, "The King's daughter, is going to die today, in this very town."

* * *

"What are you talking about?" Aaron demanded.

"Meh, didn't you hear the news?" the moglin smirked. Aaron growled, the he turned and kicked the trunk so hard Zorbak lost his balance on the branch on toppled out of the tree. Aaron snatched the moglin up in midair and pinned him against the tree. "Tell me what the Shadowscythe are planning you little rat or I swear I'll-"

Zorbak grinned, seemingly unfazed by the ranger's rough treatment. "Meh, don't look at me, I have no idea what they're thinking. I meaning kidnapping a princess? That's low, like bandits low. What are they trying to do get ransom or something? Lame. I mean the Shadowscythe aren't ebil like yours truly, but they've always had class." Aaron tightened his grip on the moglin's throat, letting him know to get to the point. "So that got me thinking." the moglin spluttered out between chokes, "All this must be personal."

"Personal?"

"Meh, but it's not like a princess that's barely out of her diapers is going around making enemies like that. I'm thinking someone's trying to push her old daddy into coming out here himself. Tie the noose around his neck and let him dangle there a while before delivering the final blow, if you know what I mean" he grinned.

"Who!" Aaron shouted, "Who's doing this!"

Zorbak opened his mouth, but then stopped. "On the other hand, I think it'll be more fun for you to discover that on your own, Mehehe!" he chuckled and vanished from Aaron's grasp.


	3. The Day of the Faithful Encounter

_February 12, X-2009_

_Battleon_

_1400 hours_

_34 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

Aaron lay in the alley, looking out of the waves of undead on the street as he planned out his next move. The rain had stopped, replace with the warm rays of a welcoming sun. Aaron sat still, trying to make as little noise as possible. During his time in the Sandsea, he and Zhoom had taken down dozens of rebel gangs and groups of thugs, some of which, had enough men to fill a small army. Zhoom had taught him the importance of killing the gang leader before the lackeys were targeted. With their leaders gone, Aaron found that a surprising number of the gang members immediately fled the battle and Aaron could take them down one by one. Finding the leader however would sometimes prove challenging.

The leaders of the gangs he had taken down with Zhoom where usually infamous and relatively distinguishable from the other members of the gang. They usually had finer clothing, a trademark facial feature and cowered in the back of the room while their henchmen did all the fighting. The Shadowscythe armada however, was no simple gang. There must have been dozens of generals, and although it was most likely a necromancer controlling the army of undead, Aaron wasn't familiar with the town enough to know its best hiding places. It would most likely be somewhere high up, he thought, so that they could supervise the troops. But if they were using a scrying orb, then the could watch and control the army from just about anywhere.

"All men in position!" Aaron heard someone shout, "Hold your ground and protect the civilians!" Aaron rushed out from his hiding place and quickly unsheathed his sword, just in time to see an enormous red dragon swoop down from the sky and reached at them with it's razor sharp talons.

Aaron fell to the ground and lay down flat on his back, barely avoiding being snatched up by the dragon's claws. The dragon rose into the air and swooped down again, this time, Aaron saw one of the guardians, who was lying on the ground a few feet away, raise his blade and jab it into the dragon's underbelly. Although the sword pierced deep into it's flesh, the beast did not seem to feel the injury. It rose back into the air, not even breaking in its assent. This time, the dragon kept rising. It flew higher and higher until it was far above the buildings.

"Take cover!" Aaron heard a guardian shout. "She's going to blow!"

Aaron looked up at the dragon. Smoke billowed out from its nostrils and Aaron realized what it intended to do. He crawled onto his feet and leaped out of the way just as the dragon let out a ball of flames big enough to engulf the whole town in a matter of moments. He closed his eyes, preparing to meet his doom, but opened them to a bright flash of light. He looked up at the sky to see a magical barrier hovering above the town, shielding it for imminent destruction. The dragon's flames intensified, but the barrier held firm and the flames bounced off harmlessly.

"Warlic!" one of the guardians cried. "Thank the avatars!"

"I'm afraid that even they've been rather restless as of late." the blue mage said, lowering his arms, but maintaining the protective barrier in the sky. The mage walked up to the guardian and nodded respectfully, "Kain, it's been a long time."

"That it has, but I'm afraid we're not quite out of the fire get." the guardian said, looking up at the dragon who slammed itself against the mage's barrier in a fruitless attempt to shatter it. "That dragon, it has the king's daughter."

"Say what!?" Aaron cried. He snatched the telescope from around Kain's waist and pulled it out to full length. He looked through it and saw a small figure clinging to the dragon's horn.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Kain cried. "You can't just take that!"

Aaron shoved the telescope back into Kain's hands and ran back into the alley. He spotted several trash cans lying in a corner and tipped them over one by one. A heap of trash spilled out over the floor. Aaron got down on his hands and knees and began rummaging through the junk. "Come on, come on, there's got to be something I can use!" he muttered. He reached his hand into the pile and pulled out a discarded umbrella that had a large hole in the fabric. "Perfect!" he cried, pulling out a small dagger he had strapped to his leg. He tore off the remainder of the fabric leaving only the metal frame behind.

Aaron untied a rope from around his waist. He tied one end to the handle of the umbrella and flung it around like a lasso. "Archmage!" Aaron cried, "When I toss the rope, cast a spell to make it longer!"

"Have you lost your mind!" Kain cried as he seemed to realize what Aaron was planning on doing. "Even if you make it up there, the Shadowscythe will kill you before you can blink!" The mage however simply nodded.

Aaron rushed to the side of a house, using a staircase of stacked crates to boost himself onto the roof. He flung the hooked end of the lasso, aiming at the dragon's enormous clawed legs. As he let go of the rope, it stretched out to double then triple its original length. The lasso caught between the dragon's toes. "UP!" Aaron shouted, looking back at the mage who nodded and lifted one hand to point at the dragon, as if commanding the rope to move that direction. The rope shortened dramatically in length and sent Aaron soaring of the roof of the house and into the air towards the fire breathing beast.

* * *

All the pieces were slowly falling into place. Bit by bit, slowly. The Darkness enveloping Lore; would stretch its tendrils into the planet's very core, destroying the light which had tainted it for almost as long as she could remember.

"Milady."

"Yes? What is it?" Milleanna said, sitting slouched in a chair and turning her head towards the door. She was wearing a black turtleneck sweater which sleeves were several inches past her finger tips. "Has Alteon shown up yet?" she asked.

"I'm afraid not." Hellenca said, uncomfortably. Milleanna frowned causing Hellenca to flinch. "Perhaps he's realized it was meant to be a trap for him. He's-"

"Hm?"

"He's sent a mercenary here." Hellenca said, "For the girl."

"What kind?"

"A ranger." Milleanna stayed silent for a long moment. "My lady?"

"Fetch my coat." she ordered. Hellenca nodded and left the room. As soon as she left, Milleanna slammed her fist on the table top. "Dammit Alteon." she seethed. "Don't you even give a damn about your brat's life?" She got up. "Dammit all!"

She reached for the desk drawers and roughly pulled them open. Inside was her personal collection of magical items; rings, jewels and trinkets of every shape and size. She picked out a handful, just as Hellenca draped the coat over Milleanna's shoulders. The girl slid her hands through the sleeves and poured the contents of the drawers into the various pockets sown onto the coat. She straightened the collar on her jacket and stepped out into the hallway.

She went down the hall and stepped out onto the balcony. The rain had stopped, but the air was still humid and damp from the downpour. Perfect. Almost immediately, Milleanna spotted the dragon and she could just make out the shape of a girl and young man standing opposite one another on its back. She sighed, pulled out a ring from one of her pockets and slipped the ring onto her finger. The jeweled center glowed a dark shade of purple. Milleanna lifted the ring up to her lips. "Wings." she whispered as a pair of jet black feathered wings sprouted from her back and lifted her into the air.

* * *

Aaron soared towards the body of the massive dragon. As he drew closer, he let go of the rope and unsheathed his sword. He pointed the blade downwards and jabbed the dragon's side. The sword pierced through its rough skin and dug deep into its flesh. Oddly though, the dragon didn't seem to react to the attack and it continued cruising through the air as if nothing had happened.

Aaron ascended the beast using his sword as a foot hold. When he reached the dragon's back, he pulled the blade out from its side. "Princess!" he cried. Standing several feet in front of him was a girl, around nine or ten years old, wearing a silk gown and a silver crown around her head. He tried to stand but the altitude's harsh winds prevented him from getting up. Instead, he lay down on his stomach and dragged himself along the dragon's spine until he was only an arm's distance from the princess. "It's alright, I gotcha." he said, putting his hand on the princess's foot.

"I'm afraid it's far from, ok." a voice said. Aaron looked up into the face of a older girl. She looked to be about fifteen and was dressed in a dark red overcoat with a black turtleneck underneath. Her eyes glowed a bright red that made Aaron's skill crawl. The princess sat quietly behind her, eyes glazed over as if she wasn't quite there. On the princess's finger was a small green ring. Aaron could sense a large amount of magical energy emitting from the ring.

"What have you done to her?!" Aaron demanded.

"Tch." The girl folded her arms and stared down at Aaron with a disapproving gaze. "Maybe you haven't noticed yet with that thick skull your type seems to have, but you're not exactly in any position to be asking questions are you?" the girl said as she slide her foot underneath Aaron and kicked him in the stomach.

Aaron fell of the dragon's back. He slid down its side, but before he could lose his grip and plunge towards his death, something caught him. He looked down to see that his rope had magically wrapped itself around his waist. He thought about climbing back up onto the dragon's back, when, to his surprise, the rope moved on its own and lifted him up onto the dragon's back.

"Hey!" Aaron cried.

The girl turned. "Oh." she said, seemly unconcerned, "You're still alive." To Aaron she seemed disengaged, as if her focus was on something else entirely.

Aaron growled. "All my life." he said, "All I've heard was about how powerful the Shadowscythe army was. Back home and here too. Well I'm sick of it! Since I've got here, all I've seen you guys do is hurt people, the princess and the townspeople too. I refuse to accept that you are the strongest out there!"

The girl seemed surprised for a moment, but then she smiled, "That was a nice speech kid, but the fact of the matter is, I really don't give a damn about what you believe. See, it doesn't matter a freakin bit whether or not you choose to accept it. The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

Aaron sneered and removed a bow that was slung around his shoulder. Then, he pulled out one of the two remaining arrows in his quiver and inserted it into his bow. He lifted the weapon and pointed the arrow directly at the girl's forehead.

"Now that's more like it."

* * *

The ranger pointed his arrow at her forehead, aiming to kill. " Now that's more like it." she said. Milleanna didn't know why, but she had taking a liking to the human. Maybe it was because he reminded her of someone she had known a long time ago. Or maybe it was just because of the fiery gaze he looked at her with as he prepared to kill her.

From its short hair she could tell it was a male and from its face she guess it was about twenty in human years, but she wasn't sure. With humans it was hard to tell. She looked around. Alteon still hadn't come. She sighed, "He's really isn't coming is he?" she said aloud. She turned back to the human, "I hoped he would, I really did you know."

"I will only say this one time." the ranger said, "SO LISTEN UP! LET THE PRINCESS GO!"

Milleanna sighed again, "So, it seems her life is meaningless as well." She stared the human directly in the eye, "I'm guessing the King sent you after me."

"I don't know if you've noticed it" the human said, mockingly, "but you are in no position to be asking questions."

Milleanna laughed whole-heartedly, "You learn quickly hero. I'll give you that" she said, "but there's a good reason we're the best." Milleanna whirled around and grabbed the princess by the collar. She flung the little girl towards the ranger. The princess collapsed in his arms, unconscious. "You'll notice I've taken her ring." she said, "You should be starting to see things happen right about now."

* * *

Aaron felt the ground begin to shift under his feet. He grabbed the princess and held her tightly in his arms. The dragon seemed to snap out of whatever pain numbing trance it was in and roared in pain and annoyance. Aaron recalled how many times he had stabbed the dragon in it's side. Any living creature would die from the blood loss after a time. The beast flapped its wings violently, but it was no use, its strength was waning and it plunged towards the earth, dragging Aaron and the princess down with it.

_"Have a nice trip."_


	4. Monologue

_The Flying Fortress; it is the pride of the Shadowscythe Empire. A symbol of beauty and grace and mischief and fear. Of memory, the memory of a time long ago. A memory which fades, as does the shadows with each passing moment, into nothingness. And when all evidence of such time has faded away... then everything we were and could have been will fade along with it. _

_I, Milleanna Stranger, have long since been an empty shell. And yet, I continue marching forward, stumbling in the darkness of the abyss I have for so long gazed into and walking blindly in the light. Accepted by neither and rejected by both. For if I could not have faith in myself, then all I have striven for in the past twenty years would have been for nothing more than a hollow dream._

_So I, Milleanna Stranger, an empty shell as I maybe, shall continue the fight to the end, just as I always have..._

* * *

Milleanna is a member of the Shadowscythe and since evil tends to monologue a lot, this is her personal reflection as she travels from Battleon back to the Flying Fortress. Milleanna also happens to curse and swear significantly more than all the other characters combine if you didn't alright notice from the last chapter. Good luck dealing with her in the next chapter and remember to R&R!


	5. Dream in Shadows

_February 12, X-2009_

_Flying Fortress (somewhere above Dwarfhold)_

_2000 hours_

_28 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

"I'm back!" Milleanna cried. She folded her wings neatly on her back and landed gently on the balcony of the Flying Fortress.

The fortress was actually a castle mounted on the back of a dracolich. It was ten stories tall and covered almost the entire body of the largest dragon that had ever existed. The fortress was presently hovering above the Dwarfhold Mountains, slowly making its way south to Swordhaven as the emperor made his final preparations.

Several skeletons soldiers who were nearby began to swarm her. Although all the skeletons had been adult humans in life, or so she assumed, in their skeleton forms, they slouched and hunched over so that they were barely as tall as Milleanna herself.

She smiled and greeted each of them like old friends. "Hey guys." she said, "Nice to see you too. You don't know where Seppy is do you?"

Suddenly, the sound of maniacal laughter rang through the halls. A skeleton, shorter and more frail looking than the rest approached Milleanna. It had a crackled skull and carried a curved blade in its hands.

"Chuckles." Milleanna grinned. The good humored skeleton lived up to his name as the Emperor's court jester and right hand man. unlike most of the others Chuckles wasn't a solider or an adventurer in life, but had been a simple traveling bard whose wits and cunning remained unsurpassed. Milleanna found Chuckles surprisingly amusing, for a dead guy.

"Seppy around?" she asked.

Chuckles cackled and pointed down the hall. Milleanna headed in the direction he gestured towards. The interior of the fortress was massive with high ceilings and portraits of former rulers of the Shadowscythe hanging on the walls. Glow orbs hovered throughout the hall, giving it an eerie, almost unearthly shine.

As Milleanna walked down the hallway, she looked at the faces in the portraits. She had served the Shadowscythe Empire for generations longer than any of the others could remember, seen countless lords come and go, the greatest the empire had to offer, and the worst as well. She had see it all. Hundreds of skilled warriors who had brought the world to its knees, skilled tacticians who led the Empire to victory and brilliant minds who created magical devices that would leave even her with a lasting feeling of awe.

She reached the end of the hall and heaved a sigh of nostalgia. Then, she turned the door knob and entered the room. The Emperor's office was on the dark side of elegant. It was filled with fine, Vaekan-style furniture, including a desk adorned with dark matter sculpted to resemble roses and a black skull at the center of it all. A red rug lay in front of the desk with the Shadowscythe standard- a black dragon skull- at the center.

A man, if he could still be called such, sat at the desk writing a dispatch for warriors to be sent to Swordhaven and reading war reports. He wore a crimson red doomknight armor and a helmet which concealed almost the entirety of his face. The only thing visible were his eyes, which glowed a deep shade of red. Sepulchure; In the hundreds of Shadowscythe commanders Milleanna had worked under during her lifetime, he was by far the most powerful and the most cunning.

"Hey Seppy!" Milleanna cried as she entered the room. She always called the Emperor by that nickname. He despised it, but that was part of the reason she did it. This time however, the doomknight simply acknowledged her with a grunt and continued with his work without even glancing up. "That's it? No 'hello, how's it been?'." she said, slightly disappointed at the minimal response. "I leave for a few years and I've already been forgotten." she pouted.

Finally the doomknight stopped writing and looked up at her. "What are you doing here Stranger?" he groaned, sounding annoyed. "I thought I told you, you were to stay in Battleon and supervise the war effort."

"I did." she replied, hopping up onto his desk. "But I got bored of that so now I'm here. I thought I'd visit you and Gravelyn since we haven't seen each other in so long."

"You brought the troops with you?"

"No, after I withdrew from Battleon I sent the forces on to Doomwood. I though Noxus would appreciate the extra troops."

"Fine." the doomknight said, nonchalantly. He got up from his seat. "All the pieces are in place and very soon, we will obtain what we have sought for so long."

"You know that isn't true." Milleanna said, "I hate that bitch as much as you do, but you don't really believe-"

"Silence!" he roared. His bright red eyes glowed passionately with anger.

Milleanna took a step back. "So when?"

"Midnight, tomorrow." he said, sitting back down.

"Ku boss."

"You will guard the fortress."

"You mean babysit Gravelyn." Milleanna growled. "In case you've forgotten, she's 20 year old now. Are you going to force her to live in this box the rest of her life?! What happens when you're gone?!" Milleanna stopped. She had gone too far. "I just wanted to warn you. We're nearly at the end of the line. Sooner of later... you'll have to decide; what's more important to you?"

_It's nearly time, little sister. Beware of an enemy, back from the dead._

Milleanna left the room. As she closed the door behind her, a young woman walked up to her. "Gravelyn."

* * *

Gravelyn had grown since the last time Milleanna had seen her. She remember the last time she visited the Flying Fortress the Empress was barely as tall as her shoulder. Now, she was several inches taller than Milleanna herself. "Long time no see kid. Well I guess I can't really call you kid anymore can I?" Milleanna laughed, "How long has it been?"

"Exactly 6 years." the Empress replied. "It's good to see you." She reached out for the handle of the door. "I want to speak with my father."

Milleanna reached out her hand to stop her. "I won't do that." she said. "You know how he is. Always cranky before he does these things." She lead Gravelyn away from the door. "We'll go to my quarters and you can tell me what's on your mind."

They walked up a flight of stairs and down a long winded hallway. Milleanna's chambers were of complete contrast with that of Sepulchure. Instead of a neat and slightly intimidating war room, her's was a cluttered, almost chaotic sea of files and research papers as far as the eye could see.

"Perhaps we should talk in my quarters." the Empress suggested.

"No, no." Milleanna insisted, pushing a stack of papers aside. She pulled out a plush and overstuffed couch out from the mess and invited Gravelyn to sit. Gravelyn sat down and Hellenca quickly rushed in with two glasses and a large pitcher filled with black liquid. She everything down on a table and dragged the table in front of the two women. She then proceeded to pour each of them a cup of black liquid.

"Thank you Hellenca. You may leave us now." Milleanna said, sitting down on the couch. She picked up the glass and took a long sip of the dark liquid. It was extremely bitter, but it wasn't bad, in fact in Milleanna's opinion in was exquisite. "So" she began, setting the glass back down on the table. she looked up and spotted Hellenca standing quietly beside the door. "What are you still doing here? I told you to leave." Milleanna said. Hellenca hesitated. "I said GET OUT!" Milleanna shouted. Hellenca flinched, then quickly left the room.

Milleanna shook her head as she watched the woman leave. "I don't know what she's thinking." she scowled, "She's so embarrassing." Then she turned back to Gravelyn. "Servants now a days. Tch." She sat back in her seat, reached into the pocket of her overcoat and pulled out an old fashioned pipe. She started puffing on it, but instead of obnoxious gray fumes, a soft purple cloud billowed out. To Milleanna, the smoke smelled bitter-sweet and pleasant. "So" she said, exhaling and blowing smoke rings out from her mouth, "Tell me what's on your mind." she said.

"I've been having dreams lately."

"About?"

"The past I think."

"Any particular time?"

"I think it was from when I was young. Maybe before I was born?"

"What makes you so sure of that?"

"I don't know. I just have this feeling. And there was this man. I've never seen him before, but for some reason I felt... like I knew him well."

"And what did this **man**, look like?" Milleanna asked.

"He had olive skin, green eyes, dark hair-"

"And an idiotic expression?" Milleanna finished. She laughed, "That's just the old village idiot. Don't worry Empress, I don't know why you would have a dream about him, but he is long gone. Failed your father one too many times back in the day. Poor bastard."

Milleanna left the room, laughing quietly to herself when a sudden thought drifted into her mind. _I don't know why you would have a dream about him._


	6. This is War

_February 13, X-2009_

_Battleon_

_0800 hours_

_16 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

"It looks like he's waking up."

"He's been falling in and out of coma's all night."

"That's not surprising. He took a pretty nasty fall."

"Warlic caught him didn't he?"

"Hush, look, he's starting to come around."

Aaron opened his eyes slowly. His muscles ached, his head felt heavy and he couldn't focus properly. He sat up with a start as he realized there was someone watching him. He looked around, startled. He was lying on a makeshift bed inside a large tent. Sitting on either side of him were a man and a woman, both looked to be around Aaron's age. The man had short brown hair and wore a paladin armor. The armor was scratched and dented in several places. The woman wore a green tunic and had a quiver of arrows strapped to her back.

The man grinned broadly when he noticed that Aaron was awake. "You took quite a nasty fall." he said.

"Warlic _caught_ him." the woman repeated, sounding unimpressed.

"Anyways-" the paladin said, glaring at the woman, "The name's Artix."

"Robina." the woman said.

"T-the princess..." Aaron stammered.

"She's fine." a voice said. The flap to the tent was lifted aside as the mage Aaron had seen earlier walked in. "I handed her over to the troops who left for Swordhaven about an hour ago."

Aaron sighed and sank back into the covers. "That's good. How long have I been out?"

"Since yesterday afternoon." Artix replied. Aaron groaned.

Warlic looked at Artix who looked at Robina. All three held expressions of concern. Finally they nodded in unison and turned back to Aaron. "Did you see anyone else when you were rescuing the princess?" Artix asked.

Aaron stared vertically up at the ceiling, "How do you know about that?"

"Warlic said he sensed a trace of dark magic on her." Robina said.

"I just don't understand." Aaron whispered.

"What happened up there?" Artix asked with an air of urgency.

"We shouldn't push him." the mage insisted, his long, windswept hair hung loosely over his shoulder. Although his hair was white, Aaron couldn't see any signs of age on his features. In fact, his face seemed somehow ageless and Aaron had no trouble imaging himself growing old while the mage remained youthful. "Let him rest."

The three started to exit the tent. Aaron quickly sat up and the group paused and looked back at him. "Wait." Aaron said. "There was a another person up there besides me."

"Did you happen to catch their name?"

"No, but I think she's the one behind the attack in Battleon."

"She?" Robina whispered. She rushed to Aaron side and grabbed him by the shoulders, "Exactly who did you meet up there?"

* * *

"Robina are you positive?" Warlic asked.

Robina nodded, "He said she had red eyes. It couldn't be anyone else."

"I guess that would explain why all the skeletons suddenly disappeared." Artix said. "I searched the whole forest last night and not a single one anywhere."

"No one's seen or heard a word of her in years." Warlic said, "But if you're right and she has returned, then it means that-"

"Something big is going to happen, tonight." Robina finished.

"If that so then we better get going then!" Artix grinned.

* * *

Battleon

_1400 hours_

_10 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

Aaron picked up a crossbow. He fingered the arrow which feathers were made of griffon feathers; very classy. Crossbows were excellent for firing quick, ranged attacks, not such much for short ranged ones, but that's what his sword was for. He quickly snatched a hand full of arrows and shoved them into his quiver.

Outside Artix and Robina were waiting for him. The three of them had made a quick stop at the armory in the Guardian tower which, oddly, was the only building untouched by the chaos that had occurred the day before. "Where's Warlic?" Aaron asked.

"He went to help with the clean up efforts." Artix said.

"Oh." Aaron said, the crossbow tightly to his chest and flicked on the safety feature so that he would shoot himself in the foot by accident. "So where are we going?"

"We're needed in Swordhaven." Robina announced, "The last bridge there leaves in 5 minutes so we better hurry unless we want to walk."

"Right." Aaron nodded. The three hurried up the stairs and into the bridge room. There a dozen guardians armed with swords, crossbows and spears stood, waiting for the bridge that would take them to Swordhaven to open. A lone guardian stood managing what looked to be the control panel on a strange device. Aaron recognized the man as the same one he had seen commanding troops the day before.

"Kain." Artix saluted. The guardian simply nodded in reply. "Will you be joining us in Swordhaven?"

"I'm afraid not old friend, most of the others have already left so they need me here to man the bridge." Kain replied.

"That's too bad, we could have used the extra blade." Robina said.

"Yes, but someone has to stay behind and look after the place. The King has never asked for this many reinforcements before." Kain said, "But times are hard so we have to adapt." The guardian pushed a button on the control panel and a spiraling blue void of energy appeared before them.

"Well?" Artix said, "What are we waiting for?"

* * *

_Flying Fortress (somewhere above Swordhaven)_

_1800 hours_

_6 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

"Our forces have surrounded the castle." Milleanna announced, "We're free to go. Whenever you're ready."

Sepulchure picked up his doomblade. "At last the portal to the Plane of Darkness will be opened! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" the doomblade shrieked.

Milleanna stared at the doomblade. Elemental spirits could could be so... loathsome. She doubted anyone would ever put up with one if it weren't for their exceptionally devious minds. Each had their own personal goals through and not even Milleanna was positive exactly what they were. Besides, most of the civilized demons of higher rank refused to leave the Plane of Darkness; her kin despised the light.

"We leave now." Sepulchure confirmed.

Milleanna slipped a pair of hand carved daggers into the sleeves of her shirt, "What's the plan?" The doomknight said nothing, he simply stared at her. "You're not suggesting we just walk right in through the door?" Milleanna asked, incredulously.

The doomknight did not respond. Milleanna thought she saw a faint trace of a smile hidden in the shadows of his helm. She laughed; whatever the final outcome, it would be an interesting night indeed.

* * *

_Swordhaven Castle_

_20__00 hours_

_4 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

Aaron was positioned on the balcony on the second floor of the castle. He could see the door to the throne room down the hall. There were about a dozen guards defending the door and Aaron guessed that there were even more inside. From his position he could see the dracolich fortress. It looked dark and ominous.

Aaron felt a wave of unnatural fear wash over him. He had been in dozens of battles in the Sandsea, but he had never felt as uneasy as he did at that moment. The thought about the hundreds of others that had gathered in Swordhaven to make the last stand to defend their kingdom. Artix had been assigned, along with dozens of other guardians, to defend the town in the front lines and Robina, along with most of the knights, was posted at the entrance to the castle. For the first time in his life, he felt insignificant and it was feeling that hurt more than any wound ever could. Here he was just another face in the crowd. He could slay a dozen, a hundred, a thousand undead, but it wouldn't make the slightest difference. One of them would get him eventually and he would be just another body among the masses. He could see the shadow of an undead harpy leave the fortress, making its way towards them.

The harpy carried a large crate in its forearms. As it got closer to the castle, a volley of arrows were fired in its direction. Aaron joined the effort, firing three arrows, one after the other with his newly acquired crossbow. The harpy dodged the attack with incredible speed. Aaron couldn't fathom how such a large creature could move with such agility, especially while carrying such a heavy package. As it drew closer to the ground, the harpy dropped the box and headed back towards the fortress.

Aaron looked down at the box. He watched as it burst open and flooded the garden with skeletons. The sky was filled with harpies now, each one carrying a crate filled with the forces of the Shadowscythe. A wave of arrows was fired again from the roof. Several harpies were shot down probably with the hope that the crates would break and their contents shatter. The crates however, simply cracked after hitting the ground, making it even easier for the skeletons to break out.

Suddenly the air was filled with magical fireballs and furious war cries. The failure to stop the armada's descent seemed to make the men stationed throughout the castle all the more determined. If the crates didn't break, at least there would be fewer of the flying beasts to carry them down. Aaron had his sword nearby in case the skeletons got in the castle. He looked outside and downstairs. The skeletons had surrounded the castle, but it appeared as if none had gotten inside.

He reloaded the crossbow and went downstairs. Several knights rushed out of a corridor at the other end of the hall. They all held swords and rushed to the door. Just as they reached it, the door burst open and the waves of skeletons came pouring in.


	7. Drakath Returns

_February 13, X-2009_

_Swordhaven Castle_

_22__00 hours_

_2 hours till doomsday..._

* * *

"Hullo!"

Aaron whirled around and saw the girl who had almost killed him in Battleon standing near the entrance. Robina had told him her name was Millenana Stanger. Aaron watched her slice through the knights' armor as if it were nothing. He looked closed and saw that the daggers she wielded were swirling with magical energy. She was obviously an experienced fighter, but she wore no armor and did not even carry a shield. If he could catch her from behind, he could kill her once and for all.

He started to walk towards her when he spotted a doomknight enter the castle. There must have been thousands of skeletons waiting outside the castle, but oddly only a few dozen followed him in. Sepulchure, even the people of the Sandsea had heard of the legendary and infamous doomknight. Aaron wondered what he was hiding underneath his helm. All he could see of the doomknight's face were his red, inhuman eyes.

The castle bridge went up behind him. A grave realization struck Aaron. The armies of undead outside the castle were never trying to get in. They were making sure none of them got out so that when their leader arrived everyone would be maimed at once. He thought back to earlier in the day. Guardian Kain said he had sent all the guardians in the Battleon tower to Swordhaven and judging by the amount of soldiers he had seen gathered through the castle and in the streets, all the other guardian towers in the kingdom had done the same. If only the guardians had known... they were marching to their deaths. Aaron gulped. All the courage and sureness he had felt the day before was gone, he would die here, but not before he took down Stranger with him.

* * *

Robina couldn't fathom what her sis- the princess had been doing in Battleon. The guards at the castle had told her that she had been kidnapped by a dragon which probably belonged to the Shadowscythe, but it didn't make sense. Why had they taken Alteon's youngest daughter when they could have taken Brittany, the eldest, who would have been worth much more of a hostage? And that was another thing, why had they returned her so easily? From what the hero had said, Stranger had returned the princess almost without hesitation.

And then there was the ring... The hero had said that there was a ring on the princess's finger which was most likely the source of the lingering trances of dark magic Warlic had detected. She suspected it must have been some kind of magical item that could be used to drug a victim and put them into a trance-like state. Warlic had picked up the sensation when he sent the princess back to Swordhaven, but Robina hadn't sensed anything, even when she had tended to her scratches. It could have been however, that the magic was extremely weak and was undetectable to anyone other than a trained magi. It would certainly explain why the Shadowscythe hadn't taken Tera and not one of her two older siblings. Weak magic would most likely not affect her as it did her little sister... the princess.

But why had Stranger returned her? Why did she give her back...?

* * *

Milleanna headed up the stairs, hacking through waves of knights. She knew every each of the castle, every nook and cranny, almost as if a map had been etched in her memory. Out of the corner of her vision, she saw the hero she had met in Battleon. He had his eye on Sepulchure and drew his sword. _Stupid hero._ He was skilled, she'd admit, but no amount of skill or power would kill a doomknight.

Suddenly she noticed that the hero had turned his gaze towards her. _Come then. _"Oh, it's you." she said nonchalantly, then she added, "How rude of me. I don't believe I introduced myself. Mi-"

"Milleanna Stranger." the hero interrupted. "Aaron Evergreen." he said, introducing himself.

"Never heard of you." Milleanna said, tapping her chin with one finger, "I find that it helps to have one or two left over at the end." she suggested, "You know to spread the word. Have you ever tried it?"

"I don't take assassination requests." Aaron said, "But here I'll make an exception." He let out a fierce battle cry and charged at Milleanna with his blade drawn. Milleanna quickly whipped out a wand she had strapped to her side. A blast of dark energy shot out of the wand's tip and hit Aaron squarely in the chest. The blast was so powerful, it sent Aaron soaring down the hallway. He hit his back against the wall and fell limply to ground.

Milleanna walked up to him and check to see if he was still alive. "Maybe I over did it." she said to herself as she started to walk away. She had only taken a few steps down the hall when she heard a little groan.

To her surprise, Aaron lifted his head off the floor and shakily got to his feet. He spit out a wad of blood onto the floor and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "You're not that tough." he sneered. "I bet you couldn't even do magic without your little toys."

"What?" she spat, stopping and turning to Aaron with a deadly look in her eye.

"I guess I hit a cord." Aaron grinned, "I got you all figured out. I've got to admit, your toys are pretty cool, but you have no real power. You wanted to lure the King to Battleon away from his men so that you could finish him off, that's why you kidnapped the princess. That ring you use put her under a trance so that she would give you trouble. However, the ring doesn't work on people with strong minds. You could use it on a kid, but it wouldn't work on people who were a bit older. That's why you kidnapped the youngest princess when you knew the eldest was more valuable."

Milleanna laughed, "Your quite clever hero, but you think like a mercenary. You are wrong on two counts. As a King, Alteon may value his eldest daughter and future heir above the rest, but as a father, he would value all his children equally."

"You sound like you cared more about seeing whether or not the King would show up then killing him."

A thin smile crept onto Milleanna's lips. The smile quickly faded as a shadow crept over her features, "And second, no one talks to me like that."

* * *

Aaron smirked, "Then I guess I'm the fir-" but before he could finish, an invisible force pinned him against the wall. He looked over at Milleanna. The girl's eyes glowed a murderous shade of red. Aaron looked at her hands shocked to find that they were free of magical gadgets. "How-" he sputtered just as a mass of black crow feathers appeared around Milleanna's arms. Milleanna waved her arms through the air, sending the feathers flying towards him. The feathers tore his clothes and pierced his skin, cutting deeply into his flesh. He cried out in pain as blood flowed out from cuts in his arms and legs. He closed his eyes tightly, trying to protect them from the razor sharp plumes.

Suddenly, the pain stopped and he fell to the ground. He hesitantly opened one eye and looked around slowly, in case Milleanna was waiting to cut his eyes with her feathers. Nothing. He opened both eyes, but Milleanna had vanished from sight.

* * *

Milleanna staggered down the hallway. Her head felt dizzy and the world seemed to spin around her. She fell to he knees and lurched as a black ooze spilled out of her mouth. She lean against the wall, desperately fighting to remain conscious. She could feel herself begin to slip into the shadows. It was almost time. She couldn't miss it, not after she had waited so long.

Milleanna reached into on of the pockets of her trench coat and pulled out a canteen. She unscrewed the cap and let the dark liquid cascade down her throat. As she sipped the liquid, she could feel some of the tangibility return to her body. She heaved a long sigh and practiced clinching her hands into tight fists.

_This must be SO EMBRASSING for you little sister!_

"Shut up."

_"I never thought I'd see the day when your had all your buttons pushed and by a human no less!", _the voice in her head laughed as raspy laugh. Milleanna growled. "_Look at you lying there on the ground looking ab-sol-lutely pa-thetic!", _the voice mocked.

"I'm going to kill that bastard if it's the last thing I do." Milleanna grumbled, wiping her mouth with her hand.

_Hush, little sister. It's important to know when you've lost..._

* * *

_Swordhaven Castle_

_23__00 hours_

___1 hour till doomsday..._

* * *

Aaron struggled to get to his feet. He had to find Milleanna and stop her before she, or Sepulchure could kill the King. He limped down the hallway, heading towards the throne room. He hoped he would make it there before anyone else, but his hopes were quickly dashed as he saw the extent of the destruction around him. The bodies of slain knights lay motionless on the ground while others were bleeding and would die long before a healer reached them.

Suddenly he heard an explosion coming from down the hall. Dust and debris billowed out from a gigantic hole in the wall. Aaron stumbled towards the explosion as quickly as his injured leg would allow, in one last, desperate attempt to save the King.

* * *

Gravelyn looked down, as she often did, from the balcony of the Flying Fortress at the fighting that went on below. Once again her father had left her behind while he went to battle. She hate being left out of the action, but she could never bring herself to resent her father. She admired him greatly and hoped to one day inherit his skill in combat and gift in the dark arts.

Suddenly, a bright flash of light lit the sky and an enormous fireball appeared in the air. The fireball ascended the sky and rose high above the Flying Fortress. It pause for a moment in midair, then descended on castle Swordhaven, creating an enormous hole the wall of the castle.

Gravelyn stared that the hole and felt a strange presence. It felt familiar yet unknown to her at the same time. It was a feeling she had recently felt yet not felt in a long time. A sudden though crept into her mind. She didn't know where it came from or how she knew, but all at once it was unmistakably clear to her.

_It's him... the man from my dream... Drakath!_

* * *

Milleanna looked around. Sepulchure and Chuckles were nowhere to be seen. She headed towards the throne room. She stepped over a pile of knights not sure whether they were dead or just unconscious. "You couldn't have been a little cleaner?" she asked. She folded her arms and watched the two leaders clash. Chuckles stood besides her laughing. The fight would be over soon, she could see Alteon was already out of breath. He landed a final desperate blow and the doomknight was pushed across the room by and invisible force and sent crashing into the wall.

Sepulchure was unharmed. Alteon fell down on one knee exhausted. The doomknight loomed over the fallen king. Alteon winced and attempted to get to his feet. "Sepulchure you're reign of death and destruction shall end will my next strike! I shall unleash the power of the Golden Dragon Sword and destroy you!"

Milleanna rolled her eyes. The Golden Dragon Sword was indeed a powerful weapon said to have been blessed by the avatar of light herself, but any weapon, especially magical ones were useless unless the user had the skill to properly wield them.

Sepulchure raised his doomblade, "YES LET THIS NEXT ATTACK BE OUR LAST! MY DOOMBLADE SCREAMS TO UNLEASH ITS FULL POWER!"

But before either of them could move a figure landed on the balcony. Both men paused in their fight and stared at the mysterious figure.

_"_Brother, what...?" Milleanna whispered.

The figure stepped out of the shadows. It couldn't be. Milleanna had seen him die years ago. It was impossible yet the man standing before her was...

"Drakath!" Sepulchure and Alteon both snarled in unison.

Drakath Slugwrath. It had been nearly 10 years since Sepulchure had drove the doomblade through his chest and tossed him off the Flying Fortress. It was impossible for a human to survive such a wound, not to mention the fall.

Drakath carried an enormous sword and wore a bulky gray and purple armor that was too big for his body. On his back were two huge, leather, bat wings which folded neatly around his shoulders like a cape.

Suddenly Chuckles burst into a pile of bones beside her. Milleanna was too shocked to move. All she could do was stand in horror and watch as Drakath lifted his sword and stuck both men against the walls. Alteon fell to the ground and struggled not to lose consciousness as small purple eyes appeared on his skin and clung to his armor.

She stood silently watching as Sepulchure got up, "Fool! You can not kill what is already undead!" Sepulchure roared.

"My mistake" Drakath leaped followed and tore through the doomknight's chest. He pulled out a small red orb.

Sepulchure struggled to stand. His armored covered with eyes. He leaned against the wall and pick up his blade. Milleanna had always admired the doomknight's powerful will, but it was that same will and stubbornness that had been his end and was about to end him again. This time, for good...

"I am darkness, I am doom! No force on Lore can destroy what I am! Long Unlive the Shadowscythe!" He lifted his blade. But before he could bring it down, Drakath crushed the orb in his hand.

Milleanna stood silently and watched. She felt almost no emotion watching the doomknight's life ending. It didn't matter to her. All at once, she felt a little stab of joy. She had no idea where this joy came from, but it seemed to pour into her and spread through every pore in her body. She didn't hate Sepulchure they had been partners for more than twenty years shared many glorious successes and seen they fair share of impressive heroes, but in the end she would feel nothing, after all in the end he was only a human.

"Father... Nooo!" Gravelyn voice rang from the Flying Fortress.

Drakath stepped back onto the balcony, "Sepulchure has a daughter? Amusing..." He lifted a clawed hand and a ball of purple fire appeared in it.

Milleanna rush towards Drakath she reached out her hand picturing shadow barbs shooting out and binding around his hand. Nothing happened. Milleanna froze. Drakath turned to looked back at her. He reached for his mammoth sword and brought the blade down hard on her back.

* * *

King Alteon lay motionless on the ground. "MY KING!" Aaron cried and rushed to him.

"Drakath" he whispered, pointing at a man in the other end of the room. The strange man stepped backwards onto the balcony. He had a ball of purple fire in his hand. Aaron braced himself for an attack, but instead the man tossed the fireball in the direction of the Flying Fortress.

The fireball zoomed towards the fortress and hit the dracolich in the chest. The fortress creaked and groaned. Dust filled the air as the dracolich's wings stopped flapping and the fortress fell from the sky, crashing into the Dwarfhold Mountains.

"The Battle between Good and Evil is over. Now begins THE AGE OF CHAOS!" the man declared.

"What's happening to me!? Drakath... what have you done!?" Alteon said, gasping for breath.

"Heh. Not feeling like yourself, King? You and this pathetic Hero can't stop what I am about to do to your world. Watch as my 13 Lords of Chaos destroy everything that you love. I will save you three for last." he gestured towards Milleanna who lying motionlessly in a corner. "Enjoy the show."

* * *

**Finally finished with the intro :D ****Now the real fun begins, starting with the making of the truce and the first lord of chaos! The next chapters will be coming very quickly so stay tuned! **

**~ BlackShadowScythe ~**


	8. Aftermath

_February 14, X-2009_

_Swordhaven Castle_

_00__00 hours_

* * *

Milleanna got up wearily, "Crap." she muttered under her breath. Her body ached all over, but she couldn't worry about that right now. The Flying Fortress had crashed and was completely unguarded. She walked slowly towards the balcony and looked out at the armies of skeletons fighting in the garden; Sepulchure's armada and now, Gravelyn's. She rolled up her sleeve, revealing a bracelet tied around her wrist. She pushed a button at the center it and said, "Initiate fail-safe protocol."

The fail-safe protocol; Sepulchure had, had it sent up when the Flying Fortress was first constructed. In case something were to ever happen to the army, the fortress or himself, the fail-safe, when initiated, would cast spell over the fortress as well as the entire armada and transport them to the capital of the Empire; Shadowfall. The fortress was unguarded and vulnerable and Milleanna knew it would be safe in Shadowfall, the hidden city in which none who hadn't aligned themselves with darkness could ever hope it find.

Milleanna sighed, Sepulchure was gone, but Gravelyn was safe. She leaned against the wall and slid her back down it till she reached the ground. The hero was attending to Alteon. When he spotted Milleanna sitting at the other end of the throne room, he stood up and grabbed the crossbow he had strapped to his chest. Milleanna didn't even bother to protest. She had withdrawn all forces from Swordhaven. She was the only one left and she was too tired to even move.

"Don't you dare move!" he cried.

"I just don't understand." Milleanna whispered. "He died years ago. We killed him. I saw him die. We found his body! He was dead!" He voice grew louder with each sentence till it reached a scream, "SO HOW IN THE HELL IS THAT BITCH STILL ALIVE!" In her frustration she leaned forward and was about to get to her feet when an arrow zipped pasted her, barely missing her face and punctured the wall behind her. Her eyes widened in mild shock. She looked over at Aaron who reached for his quiver, preparing another arrow in case she decided to make another outburst.

Milleanna felt something cold dripping down her face. She put her hand on her cheek then examined her fingers. A black ooze had smeared onto them, blood. She calmed herself and fell back against the wall. She pulled the arrow out from the wall and stared at the tip. It was coated in the same ooze. "You won't ever kill anything like that." she commented without the slightest bit of smugness, "Look at you, shaking like a leaf. You'll never kill anything like that." She twirled the arrow around her fingers for a moment, "To kill something... you need to be calm." she said and flung the arrow straight towards Aaron neck.

* * *

Aaron caught the arrow moments before in reached his neck and snapped it between his fingers. He dropped both halves onto the floor and looked around. But Milleanna was gone.

Just then a group of knights rushed into the throne room. "We heard the commotion." one of them said, "What-" The knight stopped. He had noticed the body of the doomknight lying on the ground.

"By the Avatars..." one of the knights whispered.

"Is that him?" another gasped.

"Couldn't be anyone else."

"He's the only doomknight I know."

The first knight walked up the Aaron, "Did you?" he asked.

"No." Aaron said, plainly. He stared out into the night, but he couldn't see a trace of Milleanna or the strange man who had nearly killed the King.

Suddenly, a knight dress in golden armor and a helmet sculpted to resemble a lion's head walked in. He was accompanied by several knights and a dozen healers the latter of whom rushed immediately to Alteon's side. "I'll take in from here gentlemen." the golden knight said with an air of authority. Then he turned to Aaron, "What happened solider?" he asked.

Aaron didn't reply. He wasn't even sure himself. In the end, the only word her could get out was, "Drakath..."

* * *

"You two." the golden knight commanded gesturing to two of the men who had followed him in. He pointed to Sepulchure's body which leaned against the wall. "Clean this up."

"Yes, Sir Lionfang." The knights saluted then did as they were told.

"You think they would at least have the decency to give their 'leader' a burial." Lionfang muttered to no one it particular.

Aaron turned to watch as two knights reached down to pick up the doomknight's discarded body along with his armor. He thought he smelled something odd. It was something much stronger than the normal blood and sweat from a long and tying battle. Suddenly Aaron noticed sparks starting to fly from the corners of the doomknight armor. "Wait! Don't touch that!" he cried. But it was too late. The knights picked up the doomknight armor and were immediately engulfed as the armor burst into flames.

The knights screamed in agony and dropped to the ground. The began rolling around, frantically trying to put out the flames. Several knights ran out of the room, most likely to fetch buckets of water to douse their burning comrades. "Stand back!" the golden knight cried. He flashed out a whip and with two quick movements cracked opened the knight's armor, freeing them from their otherwise certain deaths.

Aaron looked back at the doomknight armor, but it was gone, reduced to ashes by the flames. All that remained of the former Emperor of the Shadowscythe was his helm. As Aaron stared at the helm he spotted a scrap of paper on the ground. He carefully picked it up, half afraid that it would burst into flames as the armor did, and read, "I'll be back for it later so don't you dare touch :)"

* * *

Milleanna lay quietly, melting into the shadows of the riverbed. She had jumped off the balcony and landed in the river where the fast flowing currents had carried her body far from Swordhaven. She closed her eyes and lay unmoving on the surface of the water.

After a while, the river took a turn and she felt her body wash up onto the riverbank. She opened her eyes and stared up at the sky. "Are you satisfied now?" she whispered. "Have you robbed me off enough?!" She sat up eruptly and pounded her fists on the ground. "I HATE YOU!" she shouted, "HATE YOU! HATE YOU!" she repeated tearing up the grass and digging her fingers into the dirt.

"It's not wise to bite the hand responsible for your very existence." a voice said. "Especially you are the one who as failed." Milleanna saw the hem of a black cloak out of the corner of her vision. The cloak seemed to be made of the shadows themselves which danced in the cold night air.

Milleanna didn't look up. She already knew who was standing next to her and she knew that if she looked up at his eyes, his eyes, which were as bright red as her own, would stare back at her. And if, his bright unearthly eyes were to gaze upon her, he would see that her eyes were filled with tears. "I'm sorry." she whispered.

"It's alright... little sister."


	9. The Five

_March 7, X-2009_

_Shadowfall_

_2200 hours_

* * *

_It's been three weeks since the death of the doomknight Sepulchure, Champion of Darkness and Lord of the Shadowscythe. I have offered to take his place as I have often done as a new Champion comes of age, but Gravelyn was adamant in proving that she would be a suitable heir for her father. _

_I for one have no objections. Even in the days of her father I would often spend my time traveling Lore and would hardly ever spend more than a fortnight at the Flying Fortress. Some have suggested to me that I seek the next champion of darkness, the one chosen by darkness to rule the empire. I have pretended to be ignorant of his existence up to this point, but I have long since discovered the whereabouts of the next champion. However, I have not bothered to seek him out for he is... less than desirable. _

* * *

Milleanna put down her pen and heaved a sigh. They would be arriving soon. It was important to make good first impressions especially after her six years of absence. She straightened the collar on her trenchcoat and brush a few specks of dust off her sweater. "You look fine my lady." Hellenca said smiling.

"I know." Milleanna replied. "How are the workers today?" she asked, referring to the crew of workers to restore the part of the fortress had been damaged by Drakath's attack. It would be a long time before the fortress could once again rule the skies, but Milleanna was optimistic.

"Well," Hellenca said, "They've already pieced the parts of the dracolich skeleton which shifted in the attack, but they had yet to repair the damage to the outer wall."

"That's fine." Milleanna said, gulping down a glass of dark liquid. "Did you contact _him_?"

"Yes milady."

"And?" she asked, "What did he say?"

"He said he'll come. But-"

"But what?"

"He's still angry at you for what you did."

"He'll get over it." Milleanna chuckled. "Did he say when he'd arrive?"

"A week from to-day."

"That's fine." Milleanna said as she exited the room. She walked down the hall and climbed the stairs to the top of the west tower. Gravelyn was already sitting in her father's usual place. "They'll be here any minute now." Milleanna said as she walked in and sat down beside her.

"Who is Drakath, really?" Gravelyn said. Her voice was calm, but there was a cynical edge to it that told Milleanna the Empress was serious. "You told me he was nobody." Gravelyn got up eruptly and turned to face Milleanna. "But nobody couldn't kill my father!" she screamed, clenching her fists and flashing Milleanna a deadly glare. "Tell me the truth." she said in a hushed tone.

"That wasn't Drakath." Milleanna said, "It couldn't have been. He dead years ago."

"Could you be sure of that?" Gravelyn asked.

"Yes."

"Did father kill him?"

"Yes."

"Alright." Gravelyn said, sitting back down, "I believe you."

"My lady. Empress." Hellenca said, nodding in respect as she entered the room. She carried a tray with several glasses and a pitcher on it. "The Five have arrived."

* * *

The Five Brothers of Darkness or "the Five" as they were sometimes called, consisted of five generals handpicked by Sepulchure to rule a specific region of the Empire. They were all extremely powerful warriors of Darkness whom had sworn allegiance to Sepulchure and were responsible as a whole for manage order within the Empire.

Milleanna watched as each member of the Five entered, followed by several of their attendants. The first to enter was Noxus, Head of the Necropolis, accompanied by several skeleton guards. The necromancer was one of Sepulchure early followers as well the most senior member of the Five. The Necropolis was responsible for supplying the Shadowscythe with its vast and infinite army of undead.

Next were Lord Bludrut of Skullholme and Lady Bayn of Darkovia. The two walked hand in hand and were accompanied by two muscular golden draconian guards. There was a rumor that the two were lovers and by they entered it seemed as if the rumors were true. Shadowfall, the Empire's capitalm hidden deep within the mountains of Skullholme was the home of many of the followers of darkness as well as many powerful dark robe wizards. Lord Bludrut was a tall, broad shoulder and stoic, if not a bit paranoid. The deathknight wore a full suit of armor and a cape. All were designed to protect him from a stab in the back by an assassin.

Lady Bayn on the other hand was a calm and collected mistress who went most places alone without being accompanied by guards for she claimed her beasts were all the guards she would ever need. She had a huge python was draped around her shoulders like a boa. Darkovia was a land of beasts. "Beauty and grace are virtues in their own way" Bayn liked to say. She was the one who came up with the idea to use undead harpies to carry undead down from the fortress.

Following Bayn was the Primarch of Falguard. Falguard was home to a race called the Darkblood, who, a best as Milleanna could describe them, were a kind of humanoid goat hybrid. Falguard also contain Lore's largest collection of scrolls and records. The Darkblood were priests and warriors who war-shipped darkness. The Primarch himself was a dedicated scholar and being so was a creature of logic.

Milleanna took a sip from one of the glasses Hellenca had brought.

"What is that?" Gravelyn asked, "You're drinking it almost every time I see you. Hellenca's always carrying it around."

"It's called Liquid Death." Milleanna explained, "It's a kind of tea."

"Never heard of it."

"That's cause it's my own invention, well an acquaintance of mine actually."

Suddenly a young man wearing a dusty gray cloak and straw hat rushed into the room. Milleanna recognized him as Nicodowa of Dwarfhold. The man apologized for being late and explained that it was due to a cave in at one of the mines. Dwarfhold provided the Shadowscythe with its wealth as well as weapons and armor for its warriors. They forged the greatest steel in all of Lore. Dwarves mines were vast and always plentiful. Nicodowa a respectful and humble young man probably due to the fact that he was the youngest and newest member of the Five. His hat covered most of this features and even Milleanna couldn't tell whether he was a human, dwarf or maybe a hybrid of several races, but she did know that he was well like by the dwarves, most of whom were under his leadership.

Milleanna took another sip out of the glass while in her mind trying to devise a plan to knock Nicodowa hat off without him noticing. Suddenly Noxus rose from his chair, "It's true!" he demanded, slamming his skeleton fist down on the table. "You told me that smile was killed over a decade ago!"

"Exactly 17 years, 5 months and 3 days ago." the Primarch remarked.

"Whatever." Noxus said.

"And I said then was true. And it still holds true." Milleanna said casually.

"That's... logical." the Primarch said.

"I have to agree." Lady Bayn added. "Was Drakath the one who killed Sepulchure or not?"

"Stranger!" Lord Bludrut said, "Explain yourself!"

"Darling." Lady Bayn said, softly, trying to get him to calm down.

"Who's Drakath" Nicodowa asked. Everyone ignored him.

"It's simple. It was an impostor."

"Why would someone want to pose as that bumbling baffon?" Lord Bludrut asked.

"Because." Milleanna said, "He was the one person that both Alteon and Sepulchure saw as an enemy. Taking his image was probably meant to serve as a sign that he intends to destroy both or kingdoms."

"That seem most logical." the Primarch nodded.

"That's right." a voice said. All at once, everyone got to their feet and looked around wildly, trying to find out where the voice came from. "Tell them Milleanna. Tell them whatever lies you wish, but the truth is I am VERY MUCH REAL!"

"Drakath..." Milleanna said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, so you haven't forget me. Well it's nice to see that I've been remembered after being gone so long. And I have been gone a LONG time. In fact, if there are impostors, I believe it was the one who use to sit right there." Suddenly, arrow appeared above Gravelyn's head. Gravelyn rose from her chair, but the arrow remained where it was.

"The Emperor?" Noxus said, sounding confused.

Drakath laughed, "Go on tell them Milleanna. Tell them how the little raven got her wings torn off by the wolf!"


	10. Journey to the Center of Lore

_March 8, X-2009_

_Lionfang's Camp, Thunderforge_

_0800 hours_

* * *

_After the Shadowscythe's attack three weeks ago, I fear the worst. Evil has crept into Swordhaven and infected it to it's very core; his Majesty, the king, whom I fear at the present is suffering from some new and potentially lethal virus brought about by the return of Drakath. Symptoms of this virus seem to include alteration of skin and eye pigments, development of eye-like sores on the body and mood swings. __I have not yet determined whether or not the virus is contagious, but as of so far their have been no other victims. _  


_At the present time, there seems to be no cure for such a virus. However, after thoroughly searching the achieves here in Thunderforge. I believe I may have found an answer._

* * *

Aaron paced back and forth across the room. He had spent the last three weeks at Lionfang's camp helping the knight research of the virus which had infected the King. People had already begun calling it the Chaos Infection and other similar names. They had been researching dawn to dusk everyday for the last three weeks and so far they hadn't found anything concrete.

He growing tired and impatient. There were hundreds of thousands of books in the Great Library of Archives. Every time Lionfang finished a shipment, he would send for another batch. It would take an army searching and several months to look through everything.

Most of the books they searched through were in languages Aaron couldn't even identify. Even the ones that were writing in English were difficult for Aaron to understand. Lionfang, however seemed to understand what was written in every tomb, manuscript and volume they came across. Through they had met less than a month ago, Aaron had already form a deep respect for the knight who had become something of a teacher to him. He sat almost the entire day flipping through dusty old books written in elvish, draconian, gnomish and even a few dozen in darkblood, all in service of his King.

Lionfang flipped through the pages of an old tomb. Lionfang heaved a sigh and tossed the book onto the table. "The King plans to invite the Empress to Swordhaven to form a Truce." he said.

"What?!" Aaron cried, shocked at the news. "How could he! I mean I know that we need allies at times like these, but with the Shadowscythe?! They're the ones who tried to kill us! And that was just three weeks ago!"

"Gravelyn is probably sitting on her throne, laughing at our foolishness!" Lionfang shouted, slamming his fist down on the table. "

"What do you mean?" Aaron asked as a sudden thought struck him. "You think they might know how to cure chaos? You think they're keeping it from us?!"

Lionfang nodded, "I wouldn't be surprised, evil knows evil after all. And if we're to deal with this threat, so will we."

Aaron grunted. "So what do we do?" he asked, "We can't exactly barrage in and demand they give us the cure."

"No." Lionfang said, "His Majesty wouldn't allow that." Aaron frowned. "Which is why I've decided to break from his rule."

"What?!" Aaron cried.

"Think about it." Lionfang insisted, "What's more important? Curtsy or Annihilating Evil once and for all?"

"Annihilate?" Aaron echoed.

Lionfang nodded, "It's not enough to simply defeat them. We must eliminate any and all future treats!"

"But that about chaos?" Aaron asked. Surely Lionfang couldn't be planning on taking both enemies at once.

"There was another long and uncomfortable pause. "You know, Chaos is not new to Lore. It did not arrive with Drakath. The secret to defeating Chaos maybe right here in Thunderforge."

"What!?" Aaron murmured, "But how? How long has chaos existed on Lore?"

"Nothing was around before darkness." Lionfang said with disgust, "This world was built upon it. Darkness infects it like a parasite!" he hissed, then continued in a calmer tone. "I have... questioned a few darkblood and they told me rumors of a relic that may be used to defeat Drakath. There is a tomb in Blackhorn Forest with scrolls that may lead us to it. I did not believe it at first. It seemed too good to be true, but it couldn't hurt to try."

* * *

_March 10, X-2009_

_somewhere in Skullholme_

_2000 hours_

* * *

"Thanatos! Open the bridge!" Milleanna shouted. She had wandered far from Shadowfall, into a dark hollow where the trees' branches intertwined and shaded the forest from all light. Here she knew, was the hidden bridge that lead to the Death's Realm. She had come here for one purpose, to seek the truth.

"Come in." a voice echoed through the woods. The trees around her spiraled and swirled, the it vanished giving way to blackness. "Welcome, to my humble home." Thanatos bowed.

* * *

He was dressed in a black velvet cloak that masked his features and carried a scythe in one bony hand. As far as Milleanna knew, it was just for show. The ruler of the underworld, Thanatos, spent his days in the Underworld peering through scrying orbs at the world above and shattering hourglasses when it was time for a person to die. He had no need for a weapon.

In the distance Milleanna heard the sounds of two powerful and vast armies clashing. "Excuse the ruckus. Nulgath and Dage are at it again." Thanatos grumbled.

The archfiend and his apprentice had been at it for Voidstar knew how long. They fought for control of the Underworld as well as the title of "Master of Darkness." They had paused their battle for the last 20 years when Sepulchure rose to power and had proven to be more powerful either of them, but now that he was gone, the necromancer and archfiend had resumed their battle.

"They battle without a moment of rest. It is quite a racket, but does provide some amusement. They've been fighting so long for the Underworld, I don't think they remember that the underworld belongs to, and always will belong to, yours truly. Neither of them could ever hope to have it for themselves. When one of them finally manages to overpower the other he will find that he will always be chained to me." he laughed then added, "You seem to favor the necromancer."

The Necromancer, better known as Dage the Evil had come to Sepulchure some time ago pledging his allegiance to the Doomknight in exchange for a place in the Flying Fortress and assistance in the war for the Underworld. After her father's death, Gravelyn had allow Dage to remain in the fortress.

"I don't_ favor _anyone." Milleanna said.

"Of course not, but nevermind all that." Thanatos said, swiftly changing topics, "I watched your little show the other night and I just have to say that, that was COLD." he chuckled, "You and Nuka better be planning something important because you just cost me a once in a lifetime soul. The doomknight was truly something special." he rambled on, "I'm still hoping the Prince of Fools will lose his grip on it."

"Lose his grip?" Milleanna echoed.

"Did the Prince's illusion fool you as well Milleanna?" Thanatos laughed, "No, not even he would be stupid enough to destroy something so valuable. Most of his soul was destroyed, but there is still a small shard left."

"Sepulchure, no longer matters to me." Milleanna said, "He has served his purpose in our grand design, he is no longer needed."

"So you shall allow his existence to hang in the hand of his worst enemy?"

"If Sepulchure wants to escape, he will have to do it himself, he knows that."

"Even so, he was a magnificent soul, truly rare." he cackled. "But he's not the one you're really after, no. I know you too well for that. So tell me Milleanna, why did you come here?" Thanatos asked.

"I-I wanted to see you." Milleanna stuttered.

"Bah!" Thanato huffed with an air of condescension, "In the 20 years since I saw you in the Plane of Darkness you've never once come to 'visit'. Even 20 years ago you weren't there to see me. In fact, I can safely say that you have never once come to 'visit' your poor old uncle Death." Even under his cowl, Milleanna could see Thanatos grin. "So tell me... what you came to ask of me."

"Let me see the soul of Drakath Slugwrath."

* * *

_March 10, X-2009_

_Death's Realm_

_2200 hours_

* * *

Thanatos smiled under the hood of his cloak and led Milleanna through the caverns of the Underworld. Water dripped from the ceiling and shadows danced across the wall. Thanatos dispelled a barrier leading to one of the caves and entered. The cave was large and the walls were smoother than most. A strange purple moss grew on the ceiling and was starting to creep down the walls. At the center of the cavern was a large pool of pale purple liquid. An lavender colored orb was floating above the water. Tentacles had sprouted from the orb and stuck to the sides of the cavern.

"You knew didn't you?" Thanatos said. "You knew all along it was the real Drakath. Despite the sheer impossibility of it, deep down you knew it was really him. So why did you lie? Were you thinking of keeping order?" Thanatos asked. "Well, there is no order left. Chaos has possessed Lore long before light or even darkness has."

"Why?" Milleanna asked, barely able to contain her anger. "Sepulchure is dead. Dethrix is dead! So why? Why in the hell is that BITCH STILL ALIVE!"

"It's simple." Thanatos smirked, "I've grown tired of living under your father. Perhaps when he is exterminated-"

Milleanna whipped out a wand from the pocket of her trenchcoat. She aimed the tip at Thanatos and fired it with all her might. "Foolish child. You can not kill death." But Milleanna didn't care, she slashed the wand multiple times through the air shooting bolts of black lightening from it's tip.

"What in the hell is the matter with you?!" Milleanna shouted.

"Actually it was quite arbitrary." Thanatos said, laughing as he easily dodged each of Milleanna's blows. "But when she came to me, he was the first to volunteer. He was quite eager. They're like that sometimes when they die before they fulfill what they set out to achieve."

"And what did she offer you in return?" Milleanna asked, shifting closer to the pool.

"Why, souls of course. As many souls as I wish. Because you see," Thanatos grinned, "she plans on making a comeback. And once she returns to Lore she will massacre all existence."

Suddenly Milleanna whirled around to face the pool. "Miasma!" she cried as green energy spiraled around her arm. She landed a punch to the center of the purple orb. The impact was so powerful that it sent a tremor through the cavern. The orb, however, remained intact.

Milleanna fell to the ground and clutched her chest with one hand. Her whole body when numb.

"Nice try." Thanatos said. "No one can shatter them but me." Then his face softened and he crouched down until he was at eye level with Milleanna. His red eyes glowed gently, "You know, you and I are very much alike. We are both are both outcasts. The difference is that I'm not contentious loyal to those who care nothing about me. There is no need to be so devoted to the people who will continue to despise you no matter how many times you redeem yourself."

"Well I guess you and I have different ideals then huh?" Milleanna cried, bashing Thanatos with a headbutt as she got to her feet. Thanatos stumbled backwards, but quickly recovered and lashed out at Milleanna scratching her across the face.

"Luckily for you killing you is not in my best interests... for now." Thanatos said, "But do not think you will be welcome should you foolishly decide to return."


End file.
